The More Things Change
by MiniPeridot
Summary: A Raoul Silva x Reader story inspired by Skyfall and a little bit by another story on here called "Until You Love Me"
1. Chapter 1: Who Are You?

_This story's main character has no provided name, so use:_

_(Y/N)=Your name_

_(L/N)=Your last name_

_Insert whatever you want for these, as well as whatever features you want to use. I'll tell you the abbreviations at the start of each chapter they'll be introduced_

_This is a Raoul Silva x Reader story. Reader is female, but all other physical traits I shall leave up to the imagination_

The harsh morning sun was softened by the curtains of my bedroom. The alarm clock blared for the third time this morning, and, for the third time, my hand snapped out from under the covers in an almost instinctual way. It patted around on my nightstand as it blindly sought out the snooze button.

When it couldn't find it, my body rolled over so my eyes could help. As soon as my aching eyes saw the time though, my heart skipped a beat and I frantically got out of bed and ran to my dresser. I had overslept and had to get moving if I was to catch the train on time.

I couldn't afford to be late today though, not when I had a big presentation to do this morning.

By the time I was dressed, I didn't even have time to eat as I grabbed my laptop and my bag and ran out the door. Thank God the bus driver was nice. He saw me coming and stopped to let me on.

On the bus, I looked over my presentation on my laptop to make sure I hadn't lost anything or forgotten anything important I wanted to add.

A whole week I'd spent staying up late to work on this presentation, my coworkers being of little help in getting me the information I'd needed throughout the whole thing.

The train had been more crowded than usual, and I felt like someone was watching me on the platform, and later, on the train, but I couldn't pin who or where. I didn't recognize anyone and every time I thought I figured out who it was, I felt eyes from a different direction. By the time I got off the train, I was certain it was just the guys around me who were forced against me in the crowds. Although, I'm pretty sure some of the bumps and touches of the strangers were not accidents, not that I had any proof.

Thank God the presentation went well. It really helped me get through the mountain of paperwork I had to do, much of which coming from my coworker on maternity leave. I liked her though. She was always nice to me and her husband was a sweetheart. They deserved some time together with their new baby. Can't quite remember how I ended up getting stuck with 80% of her work though. Not that I could ask my boss to pass off the work to someone else. He isn't one who responds well to employee complaints.

I was so focused on my work, I ended up going straight through my lunch break with only enough time for a small snack to keep me going the rest of the day.

I clocked out an hour later than normal due to the extra workload, but at least most of it wouldn't be there tomorrow as a result. I couldn't wait to get home and soak in a nice, hot bath. I yawned a lot on my way home, and was too lazy to cook by the time I got changed into something comfy.

Mindlessly flipping through channels that night, my exhausted mind was jerked awake when I my phone dinged. I smiled when I saw the name.

_How was your day, babe?_

_It was long. How about you?_

_Great! They bought the pitch! Of course, that means I'll be working later for a while…_

_That's alright babe! We still on for dinner tomorrow?_

_Yeah. See ya then_

I smiled to myself. Sam was the first serious guy in a while. Kind, honest, and very handsome. He'd been so understanding when I'd asked him to take things slow.

Without realizing it, I ended up falling asleep on the couch. Thankfully, today went a lot better than the day before. Sure, Jane came by and dumped a bunch of work on my desk just before lunch, but it turned out to not be too bad. I even managed to clock out early.

I spent hours pampering myself and trying on dresses until I found the right one. A friend of mine had seen him at a jewelry store, so a small part of me was hoping he'd propose soon.

I made sure to leave early to dinner. As I should've expected, I ended up at the restaurant early and ended up getting the table while I waited for Sam.

Time clicked by, and I passed the time with some emails and a few bread rolls. I checked my watch and realized he was 30 minutes late. He was never late! Where was he?! I started to get worried and texted him.

_Babe? Where are you?_

_Sorry, stuck at work_

_Don't think I'll make it to dinner_

My heart sank. Though, I didn't blame him, this wasn't the first time his work kept him late. He'd been stuck on layover on some of his business trips before. Even though I understood, it didn't stop the hurt. This was the first time he didn't warn me in advance though. I told him it was fine and decided to go. The cab ride back was depressing.

At a stop light though, I got a text from an unknown number

_You aren't actually buying that are you?_

_"_What the hell?"

_I'm sorry. I think you have the wrong number_

_No. I don't. (Y/N L/N)_

My heart was pounding. Who the hell was this?

_I'm sorry, do I know you?_

There was a lengthy pause before I got a reply.

_He's not at work you know_

_What are you talking about? Who are you? How did you get my number?_

An address and a phone number popped up on my phone next.

_If you don't believe me, see for yourself_

_Who Are You?!_

They stopped answering. I had no idea what to do with this information. I shook it off and put my phone away. Whoever this creep was, I had no reason to listen.

I didn't hear from the unknown caller on my phone again. Sam surprised me at work the next day with flowers and took me out to lunch. He was very apologetic and told me all about the work he'd been caught up with.

Before he left, he offered to continue making it up to me later tonight. I decided to accept. It'd been a while since we'd fooled around.

He was waiting in the parking lot of my office building to drive me back to his place when I got off work. We had a lovely dinner, and Sam had spared no effort in making it magical. Rose petals, candles, and romantic music.

When I woke up the next morning, I felt heavy, but sated. I felt around for Sam, but found his spot on the bed next to me was growing cold. My ears told me he was in the shower.

I got up and dressed, going to the kitchen to make us some breakfast. We were going to spend a whole romantic day together.

There was a high-pitched ding from out of nowhere. After a minute or two of searching, I realized it was his computer, sitting on the table. The screen was black, with simple, white letters reading:

_You should've listened to me_

"What the hell-?"

_Now you've forced my hand_

Suddenly, a video pops up. It was Sam and a girl I didn't recognize in his bed. I stood frozen for a moment as they started to undress. Then I quickly slammed it shut. He's had girlfriends before. Whatever this is, it's not gonna work. "Ridiculous! Sam loves me!"

I go back to the kitchen and finish making breakfast. Sam soon joined me and we sat down to eat. His bright smile quickly helping me forget the strange messages. So much so that I even forgot to tell him that someone might have hacked his computer.

Sam offered to clean up from breakfast while I showered. I got to the bedroom and my phone went off. Checking it, there was another message from the mysterious creep.

_I really didn't want to do this to you, but you have left me no choice_

A video popped up.

I was about to block this number when the link opened by itself, "What the hell? I didn't-" My breath caught in my throat and I felt the blood drain from my face. They were pictures and video, of me, naked. I never sent Sam any naked photos and, in many of them, I was asleep. The videos were of Sam and I together, still images of me, and what appeared to be other girls, all timestamped, and screenshots of what seemed to be text conversations with his friends, about the photos and videos.

I was shaking. I couldn't breathe. The way he was talking about me… a video popped up. It was timestamped the night of our dinner date, and seemed to be from Sam's computer, pointing at him and another woman on the couch. I saw the timestamp read about the time I texted him and watch him answer without stopping with this other girl.

I stumbled until I was half-sitting in the bed, tears in my eyes. Something buzzed under the blankets, and it turned out to be Sam's phone. It was several messages actually, all of which were different women. One or two had sent pictures, and all of the messages suggested a romantic relationship, including the past messages with them.

The tears were flowing freely now. I couldn't believe it. God, he had been so sweet, but turned out to be a monster. I was just another body to him. He'd Lied to me! He'd taken Pictures of me! Showed me off to his friends behind my back and talked about me like I was a piece of meat!

I heard Sam call from the other room, "You planning on taking that shower or what babe?"

A lot of emotions flooded my brain. Anger, despair, betrayal. I wanted to curl into a ball and punch him in his stupid face but was too conflicted to figure out what to do.

I finally pulled myself together, grabbing my things and storming out into the main area, "You BASTARD!"

"What? What are you-?"

"SHUT UP! How DARE you! How many women are you seeing?! How many times did you send your friends Pictures of me?! God I've never felt more violated in my LIFE!"

"Babe! Hold on! Please calm down! Whatever you heard, I can explain!"

I threw his phone at him, "Forget it Jerk! We're THROUGH!" I stormed out and ran downstairs and outside as fast as I could, ignoring his shouts behind me as he tried to get me to come back.

Thankfully, I got a cab quickly and managed to get in before Sam could reach me, "Could you lock the doors? Please?!" He shrugs and locks it just in time. Sam hit the side of the car, hitting the glass, "Come on babe! Please! Let me explain!"

I gave the driver my address, "There's an extra five in it for you if you go now and get me there in under ten minutes" He nodded, pulling into traffic and heading for my apartment. It took all my strength to not break down into tears on the ride over.

When we reached my apartment, I gave him his pay, with the promised five, and ran up to my place, locking the door… I didn't get any farther than that though, sliding down the door in tears. God, I had the worst luck with love! Why do I always end up dating assholes?! I debated just giving up on love completely. Every time I've ever fallen in love, I just ended up heartbroken...


	2. Chapter 2: Mr Right

_***Why do I always end up dating assholes?! I debated just giving up on love completely. Every time I've ever fallen in love, I just ended up heartbroken...***_

At some point, Sam had caught up with me and banged on my door for a while, trying to get me to open it and talk to him. It was all a blur though. I have vague memories of screaming at him to go away, but I don't remember the words I used, or what he said in response, nor do I remember when he finally left.

The last thing I clearly remember from that night, was sitting on the shower floor naked, crying into my arms with a major headache as I let the hot water wash that jerk from my mind and body.

The next few days passed in a blur, a bleak, tear-filled blur. I had reached what was probably the lowest point I'd ever been in my life. I skipped work a few times and just spent those days in bed doing absolutely nothing. I know I eventually went to work, and probably did a bunch of menial paperwork like usual, but I don't recall any of what was on the documents I worked on.

My friends at work helped make sure I ate, even sending takeout orders to my place that were in my name and paid for by an unknown 'friend', but I couldn't figure out which one it was or get any of them to admit it. When I thanked them for it, they clearly had been practicing because they pretended not to know what I was talking about. I had asked them not to bother but they worry, so I get it if they want to pretend they don't know what I'm talking about.

Almost three weeks after breaking up with Sam, my friends at work came over to my cubicle. I didn' even hear them approach, so Vivian caught me off-guard when she spoke, "Hey! Earth to (Y/N)!" "Ah! Viv! Don't scare me like that!" She just grinned, "Good, you can still hear. Come on, get your stuff."

"What? W-Why?"

"What do you mean 'why'? Get your stuff! We're having a girl's night and you're _definitely_ coming with!"

"Viv. I appreciate it, but I'm really _not_ in the mood for-"

"Perhaps I wasn't clear, see you don't get a say in this. You need to find a new man, or at least enough booze to forget about Sam, so you're coming with and that's _final_!" She stamped her foot against the floor for emphasis. I couldn't help but chuckle at her because she could Not pull off threatening. She could be a force to be reckoned with, but, she couldn't pull off _looking_ threatening.

Not an hour later, the girls had gotten me back to my apartment and were sitting around my bedroom while I tried on dresses. They had clearly been planning this for a while since they'd brought their own outfits with them to work and changed when we first got back to my place.

I came out of the bathroom in dress number 4 and found that Alison was the only one there, "Where'd Viv go?" She looks up from her phone and smiles, "Just stepped into the other room to take a call hon. By the way, I think that's the winner right there! Can't go wrong in a little black dress after all" I sigh, getting on my shoes before Alison and I stepped out to join Viv in the main area.

She looks up when we enter, "Hey! You look great! Got some bags under the eyes, but it'll be dark, no one will see. So what's with this build up of mail here?"

Every other night I went home since I broke up with Sam, I'd find some package there waiting, but I never opened them. The first few I saw the labels said they were from Sam, so I hadn't looked at any of the rest of them, "Oh, those are all 'please forgive me for being a dick' presents from Sam. I was gonna throw them out, but I don't really wanna touch anything he's touched"

Alison heads over and looks over the labels, "Honey, some of these aren't-" "Tell her later!" Vivian interjects, "We gotta get her to the club before she thinks she can change her mind. Come on!"

Vivian herds Alison and me out the door before either of us can protest, barely giving me time to lock my door.

Twenty minutes later, we're at a nearby club and Alison is at the bar, ordering our drinks, while Vivian and I stand at one of the high tables.

The night was fairly boring to me. The girls tried so hard to get me on the dance floor and to dance with some of the guys. There were a lot of really cute ones here tonight, but it wasn't the same as it once was. I couldn't just trust a pretty face or kind words anymore, Sam, and the other jerks before him, had ruined men for me. At this point, I'd rather have a guy who just doesn't care. At least he'd be an _honest _ass, rather than lying about it to my face.

Vivian and Alison were out on the dance floor. Alison had found a guy earlier in the evening and they were dancing really close to each other now. Vivian was dancing and a bunch of guys were eyeing her, but none had made a move to speak to her yet.

I sighed, finishing off my drink, "Maybe I'll just get a cab and apologize to them later. I'm just not ready for this."

As I went to the bar to pay for my drinks, some guy who was leaving the counter bumped into me, spilling his drink all over me. One of the ice cubes even went in my dress, and I let out a little squeak, frantically getting it out and throwing it away. I almost cried. I just wanted to go home and curl up on the couch.

"Hey, are you alright there?" I look up and see a pretty good-looking guy staring at me with concern, "Sorry about that. I didn't realize you were behind me, and… Sorry about the dress. If you'd like, I'll pay the cost to get it cleaned."

"No. Thank you, but… it's fine." I push past him, not looking back as I ask the bartender for my tab. The guy I bumped into comes up behind me, "Well… isn't there anything I can do to apologize? You look like you've had a rough time and it wouldn't sit right with me to know I made a pretty lady's day any worse." There was something suggestive in his tone when he was making his little offer, and I was not in the mood. I really don't think that rebound sex is what I need right now.

Heaving a sigh, I set my chin on my hand, my elbow on the counter, "No, please don't bother."

"...You want to talk about it?"

"No"

"...Will you give me a hint?"

"...Men…"

He furrows his brow, then the realization hits, "Ooohh, I see…" He huffed, "I can't help but wonder what the other chick looks like if he'd ditch a girl like you for her." I shoot him a nasty look for that and his hands go up in a kind of surrender, "Oh! Uh, I mean-I-I mean I-I didn't mean it like _that_ I just meant-"

"Just stop."

Groaning, he finally walks away, looking almost annoyed about my total lack of interest, and the bartender brings my bill. I drop my money down and leave to grab a cab. Alison and Vivian catch me outside, "Hey wait! Where are you going?"

"Oh, uh… Home. Look, thanks for trying girls but… this isn't working. The guys here are just making me feel worse."

"Oh, come on! You can't quit! Mr. Right could be just inside"

"Yeah, come on!"

I sigh, "I'm sorry, but I already know who Mr. Right is, and… he's not in there girls… I-... He's gone, and… he's not coming back." A cab pulls up and drops off someone. As I'm going to get in, Vivian grabs my shoulder, "Okay, at least let me drive you home then. No reason to pay for a cab when I could take you." I nod, "Okay. Thanks Viv."

Once she dropped me off, Vivian went back to the club, and I took off my heels before climbing the stairs to my apartment. Sluggishly dragging my feet the whole way up until I could slip into my room.

I didn't even bother showering. Just changed into the first comfy clothes my hands grabbed and slipped under the covers.

Much to my dismay, sleep did not come quickly or easily. I opened my phone and set it out to play one of my playlists to help me sleep, set to turn off in about an hour and a half.

As I drifted off to sleep to the music, one song in particular came on that reminded me of the girls' comment earlier about 'Mr. Right'. Someone to Watch Over Me… I was listening to it the day I met him, and many times after. I was not awake long enough to cry over it, but fond memories set to that tune invaded my dreams that night.

The next morning, I woke up later than usual but didn't feel like getting out of bed yet. It was my day off so I decided to turn off my alarm and go back to sleep. However, even after tossing and turning for a while, it wasn't happening, so I heaved a sigh and got up to make breakfast.

When I stepped out, I found the mail still on the table and recall our broken conversation from last night. Feeling like I had nothing better to do aside from crying, I decided to finally go through it and, at the very least, throw out the stuff from Sam.

The pile was mostly letters and only two packages were from Sam, although a lot of the letters were his. After throwing out his stuff, it was mostly bills and junk mail, except for one.

There was a small package with only my name and address handwritten on the label. No return address or anything. Taking a chance, I cut it open and find a candy I hadn't seen in years. It used to be one of my all-time favorites and I used to burn through a pack this size in about half a day.

At least, that's how it used to be. An old boyfriend used to send them to me all the time when he had to be away, and would always bring them when he came to visit, but, I couldn't enjoy them anymore without remembering how heartbreaking it was when he'd stopped calling me out of nowhere.

I could feel the tears pricking at my eyes and my chest felt tight. I don't know who thought this was a good idea but I can't afford to be crying over two exes right now. Without thinking, I threw them straight into the trash and went to take a shower. I'd have breakfast after I'd cleared my head.

I felt much better when I came out of the shower and changed into some clean clothes. I was rubbing a towel over my hair as I walked to the kitchen, when a man's calm, almost flat voice broke the silence,

"Hello (Y/N)"

It scared me right out of my skin, and I let out a scream


	3. Chapter 3: Did You Miss Me?

_***"Hello (Y/N)"_

_It scared me right out of my skin, and I let out a scream***_

I looked around a moment until I found the source of the voice. There was a guy, standing in my kitchen with his back to me, and he appeared to be making himself a cup of coffee.

Since I didn't live in the safest neighborhood, my dad has given me a small gun a long time ago. Usually, I didn't need it, but if this didn't justify getting it, I don't know what would. I took a few, tentative steps back towards the cabinet where I kept it in, but his voice froze me in my tracks,

"It's not there, (Y/N)."

To my horror, he lifted his hand to show me that he had it, held by the barrel. He set it gently down on the counter. It was eerie how calm he was too. Didn't have to turn to see where I had been going. How did he even know where I hid that? And how did he even know it existed?

I swallowed a lump in my throat, "Who are you? What do you want? How did you even get _in _here?" Much to my regret, my voice and body shook the whole time.

He let out a little laugh, answering with nothing more than a slight turn of his head, "Ha-ha! You already know who I am darling. Besides, I only want to talk… Do you still take sugar in your coffee? Or did you finally manage to wean yourself to just cream?"

I stared at his back, dumbstruck. I hadn't had sugar in my coffee in over two years. Already know him? ...I had to admit there was something familiar about his voice, but I couldn't place it just yet. Something deep in my brain was trying to scream an answer to the rest of me, but I couldn't make out what it was yet…

I took a deep breath, "Just cream… You still haven't told me how you got in!"

I could hear the smile in his voice as he chuckled softly, "Easy. You gave me a key." Well, now I was _Really_ confused. I quickly grabbed my cell from the couch to call the police, but when he turned around to bring me the coffee he'd made, I dropped the phone, shaking all over.

"That's… Not possible… Y-You…" my voice failed me. He looked exactly like an old boyfriend of mine from years ago.

Well, not exactly. The face was his, though he'd aged a bit and seemed to be a little more tanned than last time. He'd dyed his brown hair blonde since I'd last seen him, and he was dressed a lot nicer. His voice though,... that was one hundred percent _Him_!

He just smiled at me, "Hello, darling. Did you miss me?"

Suddenly, I couldn't breathe. My chest felt tight and in pain. I held my chest, gasping for breath. Meanwhile, his face became twisted with concern and he set the coffee cups down, rushing over and sitting me in a chair, pushing my head between my legs.

It took a few minutes for the panic and shaking to die down and for me to regain control of my breathing again. When I did, I could hear him speaking in a soft voice, one I remember used to make me feel like nothing in the world could hurt me.

I wanted to scream. I wanted to hit, throw, kick, and even bite him. He left me out of nowhere without so much as a goodbye text, and now he just shows up out of the woodworks like it never happened?! Like he hadn't abandoned me!

But I didn't do any of that, instead, I just cried. Why was my life so fucked up?! I couldn't find a single decent guy before or after him, and he, the one decent guy in my life, shows up after six years and acts like he was only gone for the weekend?!

He straightened me up and wrapped his arms around me. Once I realized he was hugging me and trying to console me, I tried to pry him off.

"No. Please, let go. I-I don't-..." he didn't let go as I squirmed in his arms and I finally let it out. I hit him as best I could with the limited movement I had. I kicked, I screamed, I yelled at him about everything I was feeling. How he'd ruined my life when he had abandoned me. How he had No Right to show up out of nowhere like this! How it couldn't possibly be him.

He didn't let go though. Just sat there and took it. The biggest visible reaction I got out of him was when I managed to knee him in the crotch, but he'd just grunted and inhaled sharply, his whole body tensing around me. That just made me madder though. Why wasn't he saying anything? Getting defensive? Begging forgiveness? ...Nothing…

In my shouting, I eventually found myself repeating things I'd already yelled at him for so I started yelling about other things, like how long I'd spent crying over him, how I'd considered he might be dead for a long while.

"I MOURNED YOU! AND YOU SHOW UP OUT OF NOWHERE IN YOUR FANCY SUIT AND YOUR STUPID HAIR! WHY THE FUCK DID YOU DYE IT ANYWAY?! DON'T LAUGH YOU ASSHOLE, I'M MAD AT YOU!"

I'm not sure how long I continued, but I finally ran out of energy for it all and finally let myself just sit in his arms, my eyes too sore to make any more tears as I leaned against him.

He started rubbing my back, his voice soft, like if he spoke too loudly he might break me, "You are right. What I did to you was wrong, but… _Please_, please believe that it was not my choice… I can, and will, explain everything, but, first, I think you should eat something. Is that alright?"

I groaned. I wanted my answers now, but I guess, if I was eating, that might keep me from interrupting him and making this take longer than it has to, so, sniffling, I nod, "Fine."

He slowly stands, and offers me his hand to help me up. I smack it away and get up on my own. He backs off and goes to heat up the coffee, putting down a breakfast sandwich in front of me after he reheats it.

He stood on the other side of the counter, watching me intently until I'd started eating before he spoke.

First, he cleared his throat. "You remember that I worked for British Intelligence, operating in a base at Hong Kong?" Curtly, I nod, pushing down some old memories of listening to stories and watching him hacking the cameras at his office so he and I could watch some pranks he'd set up unfold on his colleagues.

He took a deep breath, "Well, I… got sloppy, and, I got into a lot of trouble…"

I narrowed my eyes. He usually wasn't this vague unless it was about the specifics of where he had to go next, who he was dealing with, etc.

He sighed, "I was… captured, and held prisoner for the information I had stolen."

My mouth had gone dry, but I bit my tongue and listened.

"I don't know exactly how long I was there love, but it felt like an eternity. I wanted to get out. I wanted to find you and hold you again, but I couldn't… No one came for me! ...When I finally got out, I had to go into hiding… As far as anyone, including my boss, is concerned, Tiago Rodriguez is Dead!"

This brought up a lot of concerns now. Did this make him some kind of wanted man? Why didn't anyone from his work go and help him? Why didn't he go back to his boss and get answers? Why is he keeping this a secret from them?

He smiled softly, "So, in short, that's why I have this, as you put it, 'stupid hair'. To help with the lie ...With no job, and no money… I had to spend every day since my escape, trying to find my way back to you again and figure out how to say I was sorry…"

I sat there, dumbstruck, as I sorted out my thoughts, "...Why do you want them to think you're dead?..."

His features hardened for a moment, but only a moment before they softened into sadness, "Because, those who held me may come looking for me again, and because my boss did not even bother to send help. She left me there to rot! So she does not deserve to count me among her allies."

We sat in silence for a while. I couldn't even finish my food or coffee. There was too much to process. After all, my ex had just come into my home and decided to tell me that someone in the world wants him dead, so he's pretending to be dead. He had never struck me as a bad guy, just a guy working a very dangerous job… Honestly, that had been one of the more exciting things about him. Knowing he lived such a dangerous life.

I decided I needed more information before kicking a wanted man to the curb, "So… if Tiago is dead… who are you?"

He smiled softly, "Raoul Silva…"

"Raoul Silva… Raoul Silva…" I tested it a few times. See if I liked how it sounded.

"...Do you like it?" There was a smile at the corner of his lip. Not like he'd completely change it if I didn't like it, but a look I knew meant that he valued my opinion of things.

I thought about it a little more, testing each part on its own, then looking up at his expectant gaze. I looked at his hair and huffed, shaking my head, "I don't know where you got it from, but, somehow... it suits you."


End file.
